There’s no question: Democrats won big in Virginia on Election Day, and in deep-blue Albemarle County, they didn’t even have to try.
Not only did the Democrats running at the top of the ticket win by incredibly safe margins, but Republicans did not even nominate candidates in the House of Delegates’ races and the only Republican running in a local county race was a political unknown.
“It was a real nail-biter,” Del. Amy Laufer, D-Albemarle, joked in a short election night speech at Random Row Brewing Co. in Charlottesville, where Democrats from across Central Virginia celebrated their victory.
Laufer, first elected in 2023, represents the 55th District, which includes parts of Albemarle, Louisa, Nelson and Fluvanna counties. Despite the latter three typically leaning more conservative than Albemarle, Republicans fielded no candidates to challenge Laufer.
Nor did they field any candidates to challenge Del. Katrina Callsen, D-Albemarle.
Callsen, also first elected in 2023, represents the 54th District, an incredibly safe Democratic stronghold that includes Charlottesville and nearby parts of Albemarle.
Although Laufer did face a GOP challenger in 2023 — Steve Harvey, whom she defeated with 61% of the vote — Callsen ran unopposed that year as well.
“There’s a reason that the Republicans didn’t have a candidate against me or Katrina,” Laufer told the election night crowd at Random Row. “You’re all sitting here.”
Overwhelming wins, little competition
More than 3.3 million Virginians cast ballots on Nov. 4, the most the commonwealth has reported in a nonpresidential election year.
In Albemarle, 54,831 ballots were cast on Election Day, representing 61% of registered voters, according to the Virginia Department of Elections. That’s far more than then 41,785 cast in 2023.
The county has been trending Democratic as its population and voter pool have grown over the years. Albemarle’s population has grown from roughly 99,196 in 2010 to an estimated 118,769 in 2025, a 19.73% increase.
The last time the county voted for a Republican presidential candidate was George W. Bush in 2000, the last it voted for a Republican U.S. Senate candidate was John Warner 2002 and the the last time it voted for a Republican gubernatorial candidate was Bob McDonnell in 2009.
Those looking to vote for a local Republican candidate in Albemarle had only one option: Scott Smith, who ran for the Samuel Miller District seat on the county Board of Supervisors. Smith who only just moved to the county five years ago and had never been involved in local politics previously, was soundly defeated by well-established Democrat Fred Missel, 34%-65%.
Not only did the local Republican committee not run candidates in many races and a political newcomer in one, it declined to endorse any candidates in the county’s nonpartisan races, including the single contested school board race.
Despite those odds and those results, Albemarle County Republican Committee Chair Nancy Muir said she still believes Republicans can win in the county.
Muir initially declined an interview request after Election Day, but later delivered a prepared statement to The Daily Progress.
“Election Night did not bring the results we hoped for, but it will not break our resolve. Republicans in Virginia have faced hard nights before, and every time we came back stronger,” Muir wrote.
“Albemarle Republicans share a vision for a safer county and schools that prioritize academic excellence over cultural politics. Our candidates fought valiantly, and our volunteers stepped up in record numbers. That spirit did not end Tuesday.”
Muir, who previously said that the committee was fielding candidates for every race this year, repeated the promise.
“Candidates for future races are already stepping forward. Albemarle Republicans are building momentum against one party rule. We will take the lessons, sharpen our message, and reach even more voters,” she wrote.
But the lack of contested races and the bevy of uncompetitive races this year leaves Albemarle Republicans without a chance until November 2027.
That’s when all 100 seats in the House of Delegates, all 40 seats in the Virginia Senate, half of the seats on the county Board of Supervisors and half of the seats on the School Board will be up for election.
Source: www.dailyprogress.com
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